London: The appointment of Francesca Amfitheatrof as Tiffany’s first female design director last year filled a five-year void at the creative helm of the world’s second-largest jeweller by sales.

In the past two decades, the Central Saint Martins College-trained jeweller and silversmith has created critically acclaimed collections for luxury brands including Chanel, Fendi, Marni and Wedgwood, as well as her own eponymous jewellery line. Of her move to lead a team of 21 — among a global staff of 10,000 — in what she calls “her ultimate dream role”, Amfitheatrof says that she has been excited to “scale up and innovate”.

She has also been inspired by her move from London to New York. “It has been a colourful and mind-altering experience,” says the daughter of an American journalist and Italian publicist who was raised in the UK.

Brooklyn, where she lives, and Manhattan, where she has her studio, have provided the primary inspirations behind her inaugural “T” collection for the 177-year-old jewellery powerhouse. The capitalised letter is the graphic centrepiece and common design thread of the line, which was unveiled recently.

Amfitheatrof, who has lived in Moscow, Tokyo and Rome, wanted to forge a contemporary Tiffany aesthetic that was universally identifiable, while drawing from the brand’s classic American heritage and urban roots. “There’s so much energy here — the streets seep in and under your skin,” she says.

“You become immersed and engrossed in it, and so I wanted to capture that in the complex technical construction of pieces.”

Amfitheatrof says the 60-strong line-up of rings, cuffs, bangles and necklaces, in a variety of metals and materials, scales, lengths and layers, reflects the clashes and contradictions of modern life for the working woman. “It’s bold and yet delicate, sculptural and yet minimalist,” she says.

With booming international sales and a rapid expansion effort under way, spearheaded by incoming chief executive Frederic Cumenal, Amfitheatrof says she is aware of the need to ensure Tiffany offers consistent appeal across its collections to customers, regardless of country or culture. “I think about what hues of gold work with what skin tones, and the weight of pieces too. And how pieces can be works of art; there’s a growing appreciation for exquisite craftsmanship and priceless stones that we are really at the forefront of.”

Her next major project is the 2015 Blue Book collection — 250 one-of-a-kind pieces with a heady price range of $100,000-$10 million (Dh367,300 to Dh36.7 million). The design process will be very different from “T”, where material costs and manufacturing volumes were constantly considered.

“This tier of jewellery is proving to be a major growth market for us. A huge amount of my time will be spent sourcing stones and hand-drawing each piece — it’s a valuable part of our creative and commercial arsenal as well as a source of fantasy and escapism for me,” says Amfitheatrof.

“But ultimately my heart and head is the same when honing the aesthetic of each and every one of our product categories. I’m trying to encapsulate the essence of Tiffany and the serendipity associated with buying a piece — whatever the financial value.”

— Financial Times